Bring Life to your Outdoor Entertainment Area

South Africans are fortunate enough to have weather that allows us to spend a large amount of time outdoors, and what better way to celebrate these beautiful summer days than to do what South African’s do best – braai!

However, your outdoor entertainment area may have been subject to some neglect over the last few months and in desperate need of a little TLC in time to enjoy the company of family and friends, especially with the holiday season just around the corner.

Spruce up your entertainment area by adding life and colour with these budget-friendly tips:

Comfortable & Inexpensive Outdoor Furniture:

Patios and outdoor entertainment areas are fast becoming extensions of indoor living spaces.  The open plan design is a firm favourite among many homeowners looking to utilise and increase living space.  It’s important to create an entertainment area that is homey and relaxing so that the time you spend there is enjoyed and appreciated.

Comfortable outdoor furniture will provide a place to relax and enjoy those pleasant summer evenings and warm summer days; but there is no need to spend exorbitant amounts of money when there are simple, inexpensive ways to bring colour and comfort to your home.

Large sofas in neutral colours and durable materials will maximise seating space and are easy to accentuate with colourful scatter cushions.  If you aren’t looking to replace your existing sofas, simply changing the colour and design of your scatter cushions can make the world of difference!  Use bright, contrasting colours like mustard yellow and duck-egg blue to bring interest and personality to your outdoor area or tie the colours in with your indoor colour schemes to create a seamless flow.

Eclectic outdoor furniture is trendy and inexpensive, and can be found at secondhand furniture stores at reasonable prices.  This provides an opportunity to mix-and-match your existing outdoor chairs with older and newer pieces, saving on buying an entire set of 6, 8 or 12.  Alternatively make your own DIY outdoor furniture set with PAR pine, available from your local Builders Warehouse.  Home-Dzine has posted a step-by-step blog for your convenience.

Bunnings Warehouse also provides a detailed and informative video tutorial on how to create your own outdoor dining table that can be adjusted to fit your table size needs. (

Accessories:

Accessories make all the difference!  There are many Home stores that offer beautiful accessories and ornaments ideal for decorating patios.  Choosing the correct colours and designs can transform a dull living space into an inviting entertainment area rich in character and ambiance.  A few well-chosen ornaments, bold colours, and interesting textures are all you need to restyle your entertainment area.  Rugs, table decor, scatter cushions or a shade umbrella are simple, affordable options available for improving the overall atmosphere of your entertainment area.

Protect Against the Sun:

Protect against harsh sunlight by installing a shade cloth or shade sail, available from your local Builders Warehouse, over all or part of your entertainment area - considering the angle of sunlight falling onto the area, particularly around midday when the sun is at its strongest.  Be mindful of the size of the area you would like to shade before buying the shade sail – make sure to measure it accurately so that you purchase the correct size and shape, and take into account that shade sails require heavy-duty eye hooks when mounting into tree trunks or nylon wall plugs when mounting into walls.  Outdoor fabric awnings are relatively inexpensive, easy to set up and manufactured to be UV resistant.

Alternatively, there are a wide variety of parasol shade umbrellas available from various outdoor stores to suit different budgets.  These are a durable, cost effective and user-friendly way to protect against the summer heat.  They are also reasonably easy to store when not in use.

Potted Plants:

Bring life and charm to your living space by adding potted plants and hanging baskets with bright and colourful annuals or low-maintenance indigenous blooms.  Reasonably priced pots are available at many garden and outdoor stores, but reusing and redecorating old containers, tyres, vases, watering cans and wooden boxes can be creative, unique and easy on the pocket.

Lighting:

Outdoor lighting takes many shapes and forms.  There are several budget-friendly lighting options available to offer just enough light and warmth to compliment an intimate evening spent around the braai with close family and friends.  Outdoor lighting may simply entail a string of fairylights suspended from the ceiling or a few candles or lanterns strategically placed on tabletops, or decorated throughout the garden.